Sector 36 [Netflix]

Netflix's Sector 36, starring Vikrant Massey, is inspired by the real-life Nithari killings case from Noida, Uttar Pradesh. Here’s everything you need to know about the case: Reports indicate that the gruesome murders of children and women in Nithari village first drew public attention and sparked widespread fear in December 2006.

The Netflix original film Sector 36 is inspired by the 2006 Nithari Killings case from Noida, Uttar Pradesh. To safeguard privacy, the names of individuals depicted in the movie have been altered. Directed by Aditya Nimbalkar and written by Bodhayan Roychaudhury, the film stars Vikrant Massey in the lead role, with Deepak Dobriyal portraying Inspector Ram Charan Pandey.

Nithari killings case?

The heinous crimes in Nithari village, located about 20 km from Delhi in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, shocked many. What is particularly troubling is the delay in delivering justice for the families of the missing children and women. Did the pleas of these families, many of whom were poor migrant laborers, fall on deaf ears? Were their cries ignored by the authorities?

From 2005 to 2006, the disappearance of young women and children plagued the Nithari community. Reports from Lifestyle Asia reveal that Jhabbu Lal and Pappu Lal, two local residents, discovered human remains near a water tank behind a house. They claimed these remains belonged to the children who had mysteriously disappeared from the village. Many residents had previously reported their children's disappearances, but their concerns were dismissed by local law enforcement.

According to Lifestyle Asia, on February 12, 2009, Moninder Singh Pandher and Surinder Koli were convicted by a Ghaziabad court for the 2005 murder of Rimpa Haldar. The following day, both were sentenced to death in a case considered "rarest of rare." Koli was later sentenced to death for several additional murders. However, on September 10, 2009, the Allahabad High Court overturned Pandher’s conviction. In February 2011, the Supreme Court of India upheld Koli’s death sentence, but it was later commuted to life imprisonment due to delays in his mercy petition. Koli was sentenced to death again in subsequent convictions, with the most recent occurring in 2019.

The Hindu reported that the Nithari Killings represent a profound betrayal of public trust. Unfortunately, on October 16, 2023, the Allahabad High Court acquitted Moninder Singh Pandher and Surinder Koli of all charges related to the serial killings, 17 years after the crimes were initially discovered.

About Netflix’s Sector 36

Produced by Dinesh Vijan’s Maddock Films and Jio Studios, Sector 36 follows the story of a previously complacent police inspector who becomes deeply involved in the case of a cunning serial killer, as justice takes on a personal dimension following the disappearance of several children from a slum area. Directed by debutante Aditya Nimbalkar, the film is inspired by true events.